Today we are witnesses and participants to a new stage of cooperation between Russia and Iran - Ilyas Umakhanov
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Russia and Iran are now undergoing a completely new stage of relations, said to "Vestnik Kavkaza" Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Dagestani Ilyas Umakhanov and President of the Association of Law Enforcement and Intelligence Agencies of Russia, presidential advisor Aslambek Aslakhanov during the meeting in the residence of the Iranian ambassador in Moscow held to commemorate the Revolution Day - the National Day of the Islamic republic of Iran.
Senator Umakhanov stressed that Russia and Iran share historical, cultural and spiritual values: "The history of Russian-Iranian relations goes far back into centuries, but today we are witnesses, in a sense, and participants to the new stage of our cooperation, which covers a wide range of issues related to politics, security, and peaceful, productive and mutually beneficial use of the Caspian Sea in the context of interaction of all littoral states."
He also detailed on mutual economic projects, "Our contacts in this area cover nuclear energy, hydrocarbon production, joint exploration and processing of hydrocarbons, and a number of very interesting investment projects. As a Dagestani representative, I have notice a great interest of Russian citizens in developing relations with Iran in recent decades, including establishing infrastructure for small and medium-sized businesses for interacting with our Iranian counterparts. All this inspires confidence that the positive phase of gradual development of bilateral relations we have started will gain momentum.
"Contacts between the 2 parliaments are actively progressing, encompassing the work of relevant committees and friendship groups existing in both chambers of the Russian parliament and in the Iranian parliament, too. We also expect head of the Iranian parliament Ali Larijani to arrive in Russia in the near future," -Dagestani senator said.
Aslambek Aslakhanov, in turn, drew attention to the growing importance of Iran as a partner for Russia in the context of the food sanctions, "Now, Iran is our key partner because we have arranged contracts on food supply, which means we are restoring our contacts, strengthening them, and enjoying mutual understanding.
Russia has always supported Iran. E.g., in the UN Security Council we have always been against sanctions against Iran under the theme of their nuclear dossier gambled on by our common enemies. 450 years ago, Iran was the first to establish diplomatic relations with the Russian Empire, I mean, we share a long partnership history, which at different stages would get stronger or weaker, but Russia has always maintained good relations with Iran," Aslakhanov commented.
Earlier in the week, at a press conference on the Revolution Day, Iranian Ambassador to Russia Mehdi Sanahi said that contacts between Moscow, Baku and Tehran are a guarantee of security in the region. The ambassador underscored that stronger Russian-Iranian and Iranian-Azerbaijani relations will essentially contribute to this.
Speaking on Russian-Iranian relations, Sanahi said that the number of meetings between representatives of the two countries in recent years has been unprecedented - Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Djavad Zarif visited Moscow four times, and State Duma Speaker Sergei Naryshkin, Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev, and many other Russian government officials have also repeatedly visited Iran.